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Jul. 12th, 2005 08:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
moonsheenJust three random shorts.
Allen Walker stared at the angry yellow pustules up his arm with a stricken look. “Oh god,” he said, a tad delirious. Rinali pressed the damp cloth to his forehead. “‘Though I walk through the valley in the shadow of--’”
“Allen,” she reasoned, stroking back his hair. “Brother hasn’t killed you yet and he hasn’t lost a—and the damage isn’t that bad!”
Allen looked at her and laughed; a high, unhappy sound.
“…oh. not for that,” he said, bleakly.
It took Rinali a moment to decipher. “…oh.” The look on her face became a grave one. “…that’s what the flowers were for.”
… it was just as well he passed out before the new survival estimates could be tallied.
“We need to find him,” said Rukia, seriously. “Before--”
“—before the Plus turns into a Hollow and eats him yeah, yeah I got that,” Ichigo put a hand on his hip and pressed the other over his eye. “…but I don’t even know the guy’s name much less--”
Rukia held something out. “Would this help.”
“That’s…” Ichigo looked down, his hand falling from his face. “…that’s his wallet.”
“Humans keep information in these, yes?”
“You took the guy’s wallet, Rukia.”
“We could check in this for--”
“Since when did you know how to take guys wallets.”
“—his name, and maybe those…mmm ‘Subway passes’? To see what route he—oh, since a long time ago. It’s very easy.” Rukia rolled her shoulder, dismissively. “But I think you’re missing the point.”
“Uh-huh. Right,” said Ichigo, shaking his head. “Right. Guess I am.”
There was a special expression of disapproval in her brother’s countenance when Rukia came to his study. He had looked up at her from finishing what she had presumed to be the last stroke of his latest work and had simply frowned. That was when she saw that he had been writing in numbers. That was also when she knew, with dread and certainty, exactly what it was she had been called for.
Byakuya lay down his brush with a heavy sound in his breath. “I like to believe I have been lax with you in this, Rukia.”
“You have been,” she assured, bowing. “I’ve been most grateful for your kindness, Brother--”
“I have given your whim very little regard.”
Rukia couldn’t help but smile a little wryly. “I know, Brother.”
He eyed her until she straightened her lips into a more proper sort of solemnity. He continued: “Your yearly allowance is more than generous. That is on top of your salary which, until recent circumstances, was that of a Vice-Captain of the 13th, all of which you have managed with varying degrees of irresponsibility. Nevertheless the clan had taken upon itself to set a portion of these earnings aside…”
“Thank you for that, Brother.”
“Which has given you fair cushioning, in these matters,” Byakuya tapped the figures with one long, elegant finger. “Despite having spent most of last year’s on clothing.”
“Yes.”
His eyes flickered down the page. “And your personal projects.”
The former President of the Woman’s Association covered her smile in another bow. “Yes.”
“This,” Byakuya finished in a voice that was exceedingly flat, perhaps to conceal the nearly too obvious twinge in his left brow. “As well as stationery.”
Rukia nearly straightened fully in relief, bracing herself for dismissal.“…surely these things are unworthy of Brother’s notice--”
“And the month upon the unfreezing of your assets you have already spent a quarter of these savings.”
She had the presence mind to not quite ‘erk’ at this.
“On,” Byakuya pronounced, quite carefully. “…taiyaki, it would seem.”
Rukia bit her thumb.
“Is the clan privy to the motive of this particular purchase.”
“Brother,” she said, around a hitch in her throat that was certainly not the beginnings of a bark. She hung her head. “It’s August.”
“And the relevance…” Byakuya trailed off. “Ah. That will do, Rukia.”
“May I go?”
“Yes.”
She went just like that, with a pained strain of laughter in her chest and a sudden burgeoning urge to kick a dog in the ribs.
Allen Walker stared at the angry yellow pustules up his arm with a stricken look. “Oh god,” he said, a tad delirious. Rinali pressed the damp cloth to his forehead. “‘Though I walk through the valley in the shadow of--’”
“Allen,” she reasoned, stroking back his hair. “Brother hasn’t killed you yet and he hasn’t lost a—and the damage isn’t that bad!”
Allen looked at her and laughed; a high, unhappy sound.
“…oh. not for that,” he said, bleakly.
It took Rinali a moment to decipher. “…oh.” The look on her face became a grave one. “…that’s what the flowers were for.”
… it was just as well he passed out before the new survival estimates could be tallied.
“We need to find him,” said Rukia, seriously. “Before--”
“—before the Plus turns into a Hollow and eats him yeah, yeah I got that,” Ichigo put a hand on his hip and pressed the other over his eye. “…but I don’t even know the guy’s name much less--”
Rukia held something out. “Would this help.”
“That’s…” Ichigo looked down, his hand falling from his face. “…that’s his wallet.”
“Humans keep information in these, yes?”
“You took the guy’s wallet, Rukia.”
“We could check in this for--”
“Since when did you know how to take guys wallets.”
“—his name, and maybe those…mmm ‘Subway passes’? To see what route he—oh, since a long time ago. It’s very easy.” Rukia rolled her shoulder, dismissively. “But I think you’re missing the point.”
“Uh-huh. Right,” said Ichigo, shaking his head. “Right. Guess I am.”
There was a special expression of disapproval in her brother’s countenance when Rukia came to his study. He had looked up at her from finishing what she had presumed to be the last stroke of his latest work and had simply frowned. That was when she saw that he had been writing in numbers. That was also when she knew, with dread and certainty, exactly what it was she had been called for.
Byakuya lay down his brush with a heavy sound in his breath. “I like to believe I have been lax with you in this, Rukia.”
“You have been,” she assured, bowing. “I’ve been most grateful for your kindness, Brother--”
“I have given your whim very little regard.”
Rukia couldn’t help but smile a little wryly. “I know, Brother.”
He eyed her until she straightened her lips into a more proper sort of solemnity. He continued: “Your yearly allowance is more than generous. That is on top of your salary which, until recent circumstances, was that of a Vice-Captain of the 13th, all of which you have managed with varying degrees of irresponsibility. Nevertheless the clan had taken upon itself to set a portion of these earnings aside…”
“Thank you for that, Brother.”
“Which has given you fair cushioning, in these matters,” Byakuya tapped the figures with one long, elegant finger. “Despite having spent most of last year’s on clothing.”
“Yes.”
His eyes flickered down the page. “And your personal projects.”
The former President of the Woman’s Association covered her smile in another bow. “Yes.”
“This,” Byakuya finished in a voice that was exceedingly flat, perhaps to conceal the nearly too obvious twinge in his left brow. “As well as stationery.”
Rukia nearly straightened fully in relief, bracing herself for dismissal.“…surely these things are unworthy of Brother’s notice--”
“And the month upon the unfreezing of your assets you have already spent a quarter of these savings.”
She had the presence mind to not quite ‘erk’ at this.
“On,” Byakuya pronounced, quite carefully. “…taiyaki, it would seem.”
Rukia bit her thumb.
“Is the clan privy to the motive of this particular purchase.”
“Brother,” she said, around a hitch in her throat that was certainly not the beginnings of a bark. She hung her head. “It’s August.”
“And the relevance…” Byakuya trailed off. “Ah. That will do, Rukia.”
“May I go?”
“Yes.”
She went just like that, with a pained strain of laughter in her chest and a sudden burgeoning urge to kick a dog in the ribs.